Lane County commissioners faced a tough decision about one of their colleagues in their Tuesday meeting last week.

In the end, commissioners voted 3-1 to censure Commissioner David Loveall after an outside county investigation concluded he retaliated against three county employees, including County Administrator Steve Mokrohisky, following complaints filed with human resources.

Here’s our recap of the meeting, and a timeline of the events that led up to the censure vote.

Censure carries a symbolic weight, showing that a majority of Loveall’s colleagues publicly chastised him. It remains to be seen what political fallout, if any, Loveall will face this May, when voters decide whether to reelect him to another four-year term.

Litigation over the matter is also possible. Loveall’s attorney, Jill Gibson, told commissioners at an earlier meeting Feb. 18 that she has advised him to file a lawsuit. Loveall was asked to apologize before the censure vote, but he asked instead for his attorney to address commissioners again. They declined to hear from her a second time.

But the public had plenty to say.

Testimony at the meeting was often emotional and highly charged on both sides. Clearly, Loveall has supporters who believe he’s unfairly targeted, while critics say he should apologize.

A kangaroo sighting in Lane County

The tense meeting had memorable moments. Perhaps Julie Bivens stole the show with a creative approach. 

She mimicked a kangaroo when it was her turn to speak. Rather than walk up to the podium, Bivens took a few enthusiastic hops, with her hands tucked downward in an authentic marsupial fashion.

“I would like to address this little kangaroo court in your native language,” Bivens said. “Unfortunately, I don’t speak kangaroo. I only speak English. So my talk will be in Americanized English.”

Bivens went on to defend Loveall, declaring the complaints were overblown.

“You have to know how ridiculous this is,” the wannabe kangaroo declared to county commissioners. 

Lane County to buy downtown building; ER doctors seek state review of PeaceHealth decision

County plans new courthouse location: Commissioners decided to purchase the former Wells Fargo building in downtown Eugene so they have more room for courthouse and law enforcement services.

Emergency department crisis: At the Oregon Capitol, Eugene Emergency Physicians asked state officials for a state-level review of PeaceHealth’s decision to contract with Georgia-based ApolloMD. Correspondent Ashli Blow was in Salem and has the story. 

LTD buses headed to LA: LA Metro, the transit agency for Los Angeles County, has approved a deal to acquire 19 of Lane Transit District’s 30 battery-electric buses. The buses were plagued with problems and recalls.

Ceniga picks up opponent: Lane County Commissioner Ryan Ceniga has an opponent in his reelection campaign now. Here’s who filed to run against him. 

— Ben Botkin

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Inside Eugene City hall with Grace chinowsky

Crowded ballot: Thanks to two recent candidate filings, all four Eugene City Council races in the May election are contested. The last time this happened was 2020. Jennifer Smith and Tom Stedman filed last week to challenge John Barofsky in Ward 3 and Jennifer Yeh in Ward 4, respectively.

Council action: At their meeting tonight, councilors will consider an ordinance tied to the yearslong Public Health Standards project. Proposed land-use changes in the neighborhood east of the University of Oregon campus are also expected to move back to a public hearing. 

Councilors are also set on Monday to finalize new rules for council meetings; they’ll discuss moving to hybrid or in-person work sessions on Wednesday.

East Broadway lane closure: Read up on the next steps of the paving and sidewalks project between downtown Eugene and campus.

Checking in on Springfield With lillian Schrock-Clevenger

Ward 4 candidates: The City Council will interview all six people who applied for the seat vacated by Beth Blackwell in December. The council will appoint an interim member in April to serve through the end of 2026. The seat will be on the November general election ballot, with the chosen candidate serving the remaining two years of Blackwell’s term. 

City selling property: The City Council will vote tonight on whether to approve the sale of 34 acres it owns along Linda Lane in east Springfield. An agreement has a sale price of $750,000. The city bought the property in 2021 for $450,000 as part of a larger acquisition for the Jasper Trunk Line Extension project. 

beyond lane county

That’s a wrap: Outside of Lane County, state lawmakers stayed busy in Salem, wrapping up a short 35-day session a couple of days early. The Oregon Capital Chronicle has an overview of the session’s key issues and conflicts, which included how to close a budget hole, when to have a statewide vote on transportation taxes and campaign finance.

Lodging tax revenue: Lawmakers passed a bill to give cities and counties more flexibility in how they use lodging tax revenue. Tourism officials, including in Lane County, opposed it, saying the bill would take money away from tourism and related economic development projects. But counties and cities supported the change. 

Like any session, plenty of bills failed as well, including one that would limit how much THC can be in edibles made with marijuana.

Public Meetings this week

Monday

  • The Eugene City Council will hold a work session at 5:30 p.m. to revisit discussion on a proposed mandatory home energy score disclosure policy, as well as a naming policy.
  • The Springfield City Council will have a work session at 5:30 p.m. to discuss a housing capacity analysis. 
  • The Springfield Economic Development Agency will have a regular meeting at 7 p.m. to vote on easements for ODOT. 
  • The Springfield City Council will hold an executive session at 7:15 p.m. for a property discussion, litigation update and confidential records review.
  • The Eugene City Council will hold its regular meeting at 7:30. 
  • The Springfield City Council will have a special regular session at 8:15 p.m. to vote on the city selling a 34-acre property in east Springfield. 

Tuesday

  • The Eugene Planning Commission will meet at 5:30 p.m. to discuss actions to support middle housing.
  • The Springfield Arts Commission will meet at 5:30 p.m. 
  • The Springfield Bicycle & Pedestrian Advisory Committee will have a special meeting at 5:30 p.m. to review Bicycle Friendly Community Survey results. 
  • Lane County commissioners aren’t meeting this Tuesday.

Wednesday

  • The Eugene City Council will hold a work session at noon.
  • The Willamalane board of directors will meet at 6 p.m. to interview and appoint a new member to the budget committee, among other items. 
  • The Springfield Utility Board of Directors will have a regular meeting at 6 p.m. for a public hearing and vote on a system development charges fee schedule, among other items. 

Friday

  • The Metropolitan Wastewater Management Commission will meet at 7:30 a.m.

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Ben Botkin covers politics and policy in Lane County. He has worked as a journalist since 2003, most recently at the Oregon Capital Chronicle, where he covered justice, health and human services and documented regional efforts to combat fentanyl addiction. Botkin has worked in statehouses in Idaho, Nevada, Oklahoma and, of course, Oregon. When he's not working, you'll find him road tripping across the West, hiking or surfing along the Oregon Coast.

Grace Chinowsky graduated from The George Washington University with a degree in journalism. She served as metro editor, senior news editor and editor in chief of the university’s independent student newspaper, The GW Hatchet, and interned at CNN and MSNBC. Grace covers Eugene’s city government and the University of Oregon.